Bill Wilson upped the ante on successfully hunting with an AR-15. This new round sets a new standard for power. Read all about it!
Billed as the hardest-hitting, most powerful AR-platform rifle on the market today, the Wilson Combat .458 HAM’R Tactical Hunter looks to be a force to reckon with.
The new .458 HAM’R cartridge has a rebated rim that fits a standard AR-10-size bolt-face, but the hybrid receiver design allows for the use of a bolt-carrier group that’s 0.75-inch shorter than a standard AR-10 bolt, and the rifle feeds using standard AR-15 magazines from Lancer Systems.
Designed exclusively by Bill Wilson and the Wilson Combat staff, the .458 HAM’R produces up to 46,000 PSI and better than 3,000 foot-pounds of muzzle energy from an 18-inch barrel, exceeding the energy produced by other big-bore AR cartridges like .450 Bushmaster, .458 SOCOM, and .50 Beowulf. The energy produced by the round enables it to be used easily to hunt all big-game animals in North America, as well as for tactical applications.
Wilson Combat released two rifles chambered in the new cartridge, both with similar specifications: the Wilson Combat Tactical Hunter and the Ultimate Hunter. The Tactical Hunter is built with an 18-inch fluted barrel complete with a threaded muzzle and features a billet upper and lower receiver, the upper receiver providing a flattop Picatinny-rail section for optics mounting. With the stock collapsed, the gun measures 34.25 inches long and weighs 7 pounds, 11 ounces. The Ultimate Hunter variation features a carbon fiber fixed stock. There are barrel options.
The rifle uses a mid-length gas system controlled by an SLR Rifleworks adjustable gas block. The barrel and gas tube are surrounded by Wilson Combat’s own 14.6-inch M-Lok accessory rail and comes with three Ergo Grips rail covers. Other furniture provided on the rifle includes a Rogers/Wilson Super-Stoc and a Wilson Combat/BCM Starburst Gunfighter pistol grip.
Finish-wise, the rifle comes with the company’s durable green-and-black Armor-Tuff finish. Other finish options are available at an additional charge. The bolt-carrier group features a durable, low-friction NP3 coating, and the gun is equipped with the Wilson Combat Tactical Trigger Unit. The suggested retail price on the Tactical Hunter starts at $2,905, and Ultimate Hunter starts at $3055.